This invention relates to an apparatus and method for retrieving objects from a well bore. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, the invention relates to a pulling tool and method for retrieving objects that are located within a well.
In the oil and gas industry, a well will intersect a subterranean hydrocarbon reservoir. The well will be completed to the reservoir, and the hydrocarbons will be produced to the surface. During the drilling, completion, and production of the well, operators will many times find it necessary to set various tools within the well. As those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, various devices are run into the well, set into the well, and later retrieved from the well. In order to run tools into the well, running tools that are commercially available from various manufacturers such as Camco and Halliburton are used. The devices set into the well may include valves, plugs, safety devices, and other tools.
In the event that the tool previously placed into the well requires removal, the operator will run into the well with a pulling tool. The pulling tool is used to retrieve the previously set device within the well and is commercially available from Camco, Halliburton and others. Nevertheless, when an operator attempts to retrieve a device from a well, the device may be difficult to pull. As those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, the operator may latch onto an object and experience a high degree of difficulty with retrieving the object/device. Even during normal retrieval operation, significant demands are placed on the integrity and strength of a pulling tool.
Sometimes, the amount of force required to dislodge the object overcomes the structural integrity of the pulling tool. In other cases, the object being pulled becomes in effect stuck in the well. Therefore, pulling tools have been designed so that the tool will shear off of the object at a predetermined force.
Prior art tools have been limited in the amount of pull force that can be applied to the pulling tool. The pull force will be limited by the structural design of the pulling tool. Therefore, there is a need for a tool that will allow for a greater pulling force to be exerted. There is also a need for a pulling tool that will allow for a greater force to be exerted in highly deviated and horizontal wells.